WATER works closed Crouch End Broadway this weekend causing problems for traders and traffic. The Broadway was closed between the clock tower and Crouch End Hill from Saturday morning to early Monday while Thames Water engineers worked to f

Rhiannon Evans

WATER works closed Crouch End Broadway this weekend causing problems for traders and traffic.

The Broadway was closed between the clock tower and Crouch End Hill from Saturday morning to early Monday while Thames Water engineers worked to fill a void beneath a water main that had burst the previous week.

While traders along the stretch of road reported profits down for the weekend, motorists unfamiliar with the area were left scratching their heads after poor signage left them stranded in residential roads.

Crouch End councillor David Winskill said residential roads such as Landrock Road, already heavily lined with parked cars, were jammed with motorists who had been led down diversions and then were not told where to go.

"It's excellent news this water main has finally been fixed but the problem over the weekend for Crouch End residents has been heavy traffic trying to find its way through narrow residential streets," he said.

"Lots of residents had their sleep disrupted and have been virtually unable to get out of their own homes.

"With some foresight and planning the appropriate signage and, if necessary, parking suspensions could have made this a lot easier.

"I have asked for a meeting with the appropriate Haringey staff to find out why these measures were not put into place and to produce a plan in case this happens again."

Owner of Dunn's Bakery on the Broadway, Chris Freeman, said: "I think there was some detrimental effect on business this weekend, obviously - certainly there was an issue around the diversion of traffic onto the residential roads and the lack of proper signing.

"I'm just glad it's finished with and things can get back to normal."

Owner of Broadway Fruiterers Michael Plastiras added the works had "definitely affected trade badly".

A council spokeswoman said: "We made every effort to minimise the disruption caused by the emergency works undertaken by Thames Water.

"Alternative routes were signposted by the council, Transport for London identified alternative bus routes and bus stops and detailed information was posted on the council website.

"Diverting thousands of cars and hundreds of buses from a busy thoroughfare at short notice is a real challenge and it's likely that some residential streets had more traffic than usual.

"We apologise for any disruption caused to residents - the work is now finished."

A spokeswoman for Thames Water added: "We apologise for the inconvenience this caused to residents and road users. The road was closed to enable us to repair damage caused to the road when the pipe burst.